Richard Glover: Plenty of bad news, so why invent more?

Here's a curiosity of the modern world: we're so hungry for bad news, we're forced to invent it. In just the last fortnight, we've been told that Sydney has suffered a sharp rise in apartment fires, that we've failed in our efforts to lower the road toll and that drug use is rising strongly.

All these statements are wrong and yet they received wide coverage. A dutiful media gave us what we wanted. It's a measure of our desire, our need, to believe the world is getting worse.

It's a measure of our desire, our need, to believe the world is getting worse.

It's not as if there isn't enough genuinely bad news. Just this week there was deeply worrying news on climate change, terrible figures about youth anxiety, and the "let-the-bully-win" decision on the use of Opera House sails – a decision endorsed by the pathetic craven weaklings on both sides of politics.

That's plenty of bad news, but it's not enough to slake our thirst.

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And so, on ABC Radio, a spokesperson for the Red Cross noted the recent spike in house fires: "In Sydney we're pretty complacent. We've seen a real increase in unit fires …".'

Whenever I hear a claim like this, I have my own negative urge: to check whether it's true. In this case, according to Fire and Rescue NSW, there has indeed been an 11 per cent increase in the number of apartment fires, but also a huge increase in the number of apartments, with construction up by 147 per cent over the last decade.

The more legitimate figure is the overall number of building fires, and here the numbers are strongly down: in the course of four years, falling from 6766 to 5550.

Such remarkably good news is rarely reported. Lobby groups, keen for funding and attention, emphasise the negative – a "crisis" that needs their help to solve. And the media, by and large, believe negative headlines win more eyeballs.

No wonder we're all turning to drugs.

Here's Monday's news as headlined by various outlets: "Cocaine use reaches its highest point ever"; "Cocaine and pure ecstasy use is on the rise"; "People are consuming at record-high levels."

Can this be true? After all, the most recent National Health Drug Survey, released last year, showed younger people (aged under 30) were smoking less, drinking less and using fewer illicit drugs in 2016 than in 2001. With older people, there was little to no change.

How can both reports be true? Ah, this week's headlines were based on a survey of 800 people who are already regular drug users. Even the report's author, Dr Amy Peacock, stressed the results told us nothing about the drug consumption of average Australians.

Then there's the "epidemic" of childhood obesity. The only catch is that the rate of childhood obesity has been steady since about 2011. It's still high but, to me, the word "epidemic" suggests something that's growing in scope, infecting increasing numbers.

While the figures for some states have worsened – Victoria's in particular – in NSW, in the space of seven years, the figures have dramatically improved: from 27 per cent of children being "overweight" or "obese" to 23 per cent.

That's a big change for the better, but I can find no record of it being reported, despite its publication last month by the authoritative Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.

The negative Victorian figures, drawn from the same report? Well, naturally, they were reported: "The rate of childhood obesity is rising faster in Victoria than in any other state", said Victoria's bestselling newspaper.

Once you start collecting these things, fresh examples appear every day.

From last week's Herald: Australia faces a "crisis of complacency" over road safety and is on a "road to nowhere". The article notes that road deaths are down on 30 years ago, but offers a new definition of "failure": anything above zero fatalities.

In truth, the reduction in the Australian road toll is a remarkable success story. In 1970, there were 3798 deaths on our roads. Today it's 1225, despite a doubling population. If the old rate still pertained, we'd lose 6371 more people every year.

Just how dramatic does good news need to be to achieve a headline? Is the saving of more than 6000 Australian lives – each year, every year – not worth a bit of a fuss?

More examples crowd in. From this week's The Times of London: "Sex abuse and slavery on the rise, warn police". The article then talks about a 50 per cent increase in "violence with injury".

This is truly headline news, since crime rates around the Western World have tumbled remarkably over the last two decades. Why is the UK so different?

The "figures", it turns out, are predictions by each police chief of what might happen in their district over the next five years. My guess: they are jostling each other for increased resources. You may decide to take the figures with a grain of salt, but The Times is salt-shaker free.

Why this hunger for bad news? Maybe, as we get older, it's the only way we can explain the weariness in our limbs, and the wrinkles in the mirror.

Richard Glover is the author of 12 books, including the prize-winning memoir “Flesh Wounds”. He presents “Drive” on 702 ABC Sydney and the comedy program “Thank God It’s Friday” on ABC local radio. For more: www.richardglover.com.au